


dongbangappas | bunnies and bandaids

by plincess_cho (ai_hao)



Series: DongBangAppas [1]
Category: DBSK | Tohoshinki | TVfXQ | TVXQ
Genre: Author: Ai, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-06
Updated: 2016-04-06
Packaged: 2018-05-31 16:13:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,612
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6477106
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ai_hao/pseuds/plincess_cho
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Changmin's daughter wakes up with a fever.</p>
            </blockquote>





	dongbangappas | bunnies and bandaids

**Author's Note:**

  * For [powerfulsmiles](https://archiveofourown.org/users/powerfulsmiles/gifts).



"Daddy?"

The sound of his daughter's voice immediately jerks Changmin out of sleep and into the land of the living. He opens his eyes and rolls over to see his little girl standing in the doorway. She holds a flashlight in one hand to ward of the scary darkness of the night and her trusty stuffed rabbit in the other.

"What's the matter, Minseo?" Changmin asks. He pulls himself out of bed and walks over to her.

"I don't feel good," she croaks. "My throat hurts and I can't sleep."

Changmin puts his hand to her forehead. Sure enough, it's warm to the touch. Changmin takes the flashlight from her hand and switches on the light instead. He takes her hand in his and walks her towards the kitchen. He sits her on the stool and hands her a glass of milk. "Drink this while Daddy goes to get the thermometer."

"Okay," Minseo replies. She tries to take a sip of milk but is unsuccessful. "It hurts to swallow," she moans.

Changmin hurries back with the kid thermometer and sticks it under her tongue. "Close your mouth, Minnie," he says.

When he pulls it out, the temperature reads over 38* C, and Changmin tries not to freak out. It could be just a childhood fever. It could be strep throat. Or it could be some incredibly deadly disease that they didn't catch in time that...

Changmin forces himself to breathe.

"Daddy?" Minseo asks, her voice wavering. "Am I going to be okay?"

Changmin realizes that he's scaring her and forces a smile onto his face. "Of course, princess," he replies. "We're going to go to the doctor to get you some medicine, okay?"

To her credit, Minseo doesn't cry. She simply nods and let Changmin lead her back to her bedroom. He pulls out a pair of pants and a sweater and sets them on the bed for her to put on.

"Daddy's going to go get ready too, okay?" he says. At her nod, he hurries back to his room to find something to throw on. He pulls on a similar outfit of pants and a sweater and grabs his phone off the nightstand. He calls into the police station and reaches the night clerk.

"Seoul Metropolitan Police, how may I assist you?"

"Youngja, it's Changmin."

"Changmin!" she exclaims with concern. "What's wrong? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," he replies. "But I won't be able to come in today. I have to take Minseo to the doctor."

"Ah," the woman replies in understanding.

"It's probably just a cold or strep throat, but I'm getting her checked out just in case. I'm going to call Kyuhyun to come in for me instead. He owes me."

"Alright. I'll be sure to tell the boss," she replies. "And you tell little Min that I hope she feels better."

"I will," Changmin replies. He bids her farewell before placing another call. The phone rings and rings before someone finally answers.

"H'lo," comes a sleepy voice on the other line.

"Kyuhyun? It's Changmin," Changmin says before Kyuhyun's even woken up. "I know it's your day off but I need you to cover for me today."

His partner groans and grouses into the phone, but he agrees immediately once he hears Minseo is ill. Changmin thanks him profusely before hanging up and going to collect Minseo.

The sky outside is still pitch black and Changmin fights back a yawn as he drives for the pediatrics center. He checks on Minseo in the rearview mirror and watches as she morosely looks out the window, grimacing every time she has to swallow. He keeps telling himself that it's nothing serious and that kids get sick all the time but...

They pull into the parking lot and Changmin goes around to let Minseo out of the back of the squad car. Normally, a ride in Officer Daddy's police car was considered a treat, but today Minseo is too sleepy and sick to enjoy it. Changmin holds her hand as they walk through the parking lot and into the clinic.

A receptionist greets them with a smile that's far too cheery for it being the middle of the night.

"We'd like to see Dr. Kim please," Changmin says.

"I'm sorry," she replies regretfully. "Dr. Kim won't be in until tomorrow."

Minseo clenches Changmin's hand and leans against his side. He looks down at her for a moment before turning back, "Is there any other pediatrician available? My daughter is ill and we want to make sure..." he takes a breath, "that everything is alright."

She checks her logs. "Ah!" she exclaims. "You're in luck. Dr. Jung is working the night shift today. Let me call one of the nurses and she'll take you back."

The nurse that leads them to the examining room looks like a high school student. She instructs Changmin to lift Minseo up onto the examining table as she pulls out a clipboard. "What brings you in today?" she asks Changmin.

"Minseo, can you tell the nurse what hurts?" Changmin says gently.

"My throat hurts and my head hurts and my eyes hurt and I'm sleepy and--" Minseo replies.

"It's mainly her throat," Changmin says. "I took her temperature before we came and it was about 38*C."

"We should do a throat swab to check for strep throat," the nurse says. She jots a few things down on the clipboard before opening a cabinet to get the test swabs. "Alright, Minseo, I'm going to need you to open your mouth."

Minseo does, but apparently not widely enough. "Open wider!" the nurse demands. Minseo opens her small mouth as widely as she can so the nurse can insert the swab. But she goes too far and Minseo starts to cough and gag.

"Stop!" Changmin exclaims, leaping up from his seat and rushing towards his daughter.

The nurse extracts the swab and drops it into a test tube. "Most kids gag on their first throat swab," she says matter-of-factly. "I'll take this to the test lab. Wait here." She hurries out of the room without another word.

Tears are slipping down Minseo's cheek and Changmin hurriedly scoops her into his arms. He holds her close and strokes her hair as she whimpers in his arms. "You're okay," he murmurs. He knows she hates doctors. He hates doctors. His annual physical is sheer torture. But he has to stay strong for his baby girl.

"Daddy?" Minseo asks in a small, teary voice. "Can you sing the song?"

"Sure," he replies. Changmin readjusts her in his arms and starts to sing the nursery songs that he and his wife sang to her when she was younger. When his wife was still alive. When...

Changmin focuses all of his attention into singing about the bears and the bear family. Minseo relaxes against him and her tears subside.

The door opens right as Changmin is headed into the fourth verse of the bear song. Changmin turns around, ready to face the mean high school nurse from before, but instead finds a man in a doctor's coat with a warm smile.

"Hello, I'm Dr. Jung," he says to both of them. He looks straight at Minseo and says gently, "You must be Shim Minseo."

Minseo grips Changmin tightly and doesn't respond. "Yes," Changmin replies for her. "This is Minseo."

"And you must be, her dad?" Dr. Jung asks, still smiling kindly.

Changmin nods, but says nothing.

Dr. Jung motions for them to sit in the chairs opposite from the examination table. Changmin sits down and pulls Minseo into his lap. She buries her face in his chest and refuses to look at the doctor, still scarred from the incident with the throat swab from earlier.

Dr. Jung sits down as well and looks at the clipboard in his hands. "Your test results are in," he says gently. "I'm afraid our dear Minseo does indeed have strep throat."

At those words, Changmin breathes a sigh of relief. Deep down, he'd known that it was nothing serious, but hearing the words from Dr. Jung make it all the more real.

"It's easily treatable," Dr. Jung says. "I can send you home with a prescription for penicillin right now, if you'd like. We also have a penicillin injection that we've been giving to kids who have a high likelihood of getting strep throat."

At the sound of the word "injection," Minseo starts tearing up again and shifts in Changmin's lap.

"Uh, what are the benefits of the--" he looks down at his daughter and continues, "the i-n-j-e-c-t-i-o-n."

"Most patients who get the shot never get strep throat again. The penicillin shot is much longer lasting. Plus, it's just one," he looks at Minseo and smiles, "i-n-j-e-c-t-i-o-n. The penicillin pills must be taken for up to 10 days. It's ultimately your decision, but we highly encourage parents to consider it."

Changmin looks down at his increasingly distraught daughter in his arms. The injection makes more sense: one and done. He knows Minseo hates taking pills as well, but the thought of getting an injection is setting her over the edge.

"Let's go with the second option," he says. "Will it take long?"

"No," Dr. Jung replies. "I'll tell the nurse to prepare it now."

Changmin nods and the doctor stands up. He pats Minseo on the shoulder and says, "Don't worry, little lady, we'll have you fixed up in no time."

He leaves the two of them alone and Changmin pulls Minseo to look at him so he can deliver the bad news. "Minnie, the doctor has something that'll make you all better, okay?"

"Okay," she says through tear-filled eyes.

"Do you trust Daddy?" he asks.

"Yes," she replies without hesitating. Changmin's heart hitches in his chest.

"Okay," he takes a deep breath. "The doctor is going to give you a little injection--"

"Noooooooo," Minseo wails. Changmin pats her back to calm her down. He remembers what it was like getting injections as a kid; he'd hated it too.

"Minseo, it's going to take 5 seconds and then it'll all be over, okay?" Changmin asks.

"No Daddyyyyyy," she cries.

"Minnie, you don't like taking pills and if you don't get the shot, you'll have to take a lot of pills."

She stops wailing to consider this. The door opens again, letting in Dr. Jung and the high school nurse.

Changmin stands up and gently sets her on the examination table. He brushes her hair back and wipes the tears off her cheeks. "It'll all be over before you know it, okay?"

"Okay," she says. But as Changmin steps back she reaches out for him again. "Don't leave me, Daddy!"

Changmin sits down on the examination table next to her and holds her hand. "Don't worry, sweetheart," he says, his voice full of tenderness. "Daddy is here."

The nurse pulls up the sleeve of Minseo's sweater and rubs an antiseptic on her arm for the injection. She rips open a sealed package and pulls out the needle for the injection. Minseo flinches but doesn't yet begin to cry. The nurse grabs her arm and is about to inject the shot, but Minseo pulls away at the last minute with a yelp.

"Hey!" the nurse exclaims angrily.

At that, Minseo dissolves into tears and reaches for Changmin. He gathers her close and glares at the nurse. "You have to be more gentle!" he says angrily. "Can't you see she's scared?"

Dr. Jung steps in to diffuse the situation. "I think I know someone who can help. He tells the nurse to discard the needle and goes to the cabinet to pull out a stuffed rabbit wearing a hospital gown. "Minseo, I'd like you to meet my friend Miss Bunny."

Minseo hesitantly looks up and eyes the rabbit suspiciously. To her and Changmin's surprise, the rabbit looks remarkably similar to the rabbit she has at home.

"Miss Bunny has a sore throat too," Dr. Jung explains. "She's going to get a shot so that she can be all better." He pauses and says, "Maybe you'd like to hold her hand while I give her the shot?" He holds out the rabbit.

Minseo nods solemnly and reaches out to take the rabbit. She holds its arm as Dr. Jung takes a plastic needle and gives the stuffed animal a fake injection.

"Now comes the fun part," he says. He takes a small box from the cabinet and opens it for Minseo. "Can you pick out a pretty bandage for Miss Bunny? That'll make her feel so much better."

Minseo digs into the array of cloth bandages before selecting a purple bandage with butterflies on it. She helps Dr. Jung tie the bandage around the rabbit's arm.

"Good job!" Dr. Jung exclaims. He gives her a broad smile and Changmin watches as the corners of Minseo's mouth twitch upward. "Now Miss Bunny will be all better. Thanks, Minseo!"

"Okay, princess, do you think you can get your injection now?" Changmin asks softly.

"Miss Bunny will hold your hand, just like you held hers," Dr. Jung says.

"Okay," Minseo agrees.

Once again, the nurse swabs Minseo's arm and rips open the sealed package, but Dr. Jung reaches for the needle instead. "Miss Bunny and your daddy are here to hold your hand," Dr. Jung says. "Isn't that right, Dad?" he asks Changmin.

Changmin nods. "That's right," he says.

"Daddy, can you sing the song?" Minseo asks. Changmin nods and starts singing the bear song again as he watches Dr. Jung bring the needle closer to Minseo's arm. Minseo doesn't realize what's happening until she feels the small pinch.

"Ow!" she exclaims, and her eyes fill with tears.

"Minseo, we're all done!" Dr. Jung exclaims. "That's it. You did it!"

"I... I did?" Minseo asks, bewildered at how the horrible procedure could have ended so soon.

"You did," Changmin says, squeezing her hand tightly. "I'm so proud of you, Minseo."

Minseo beams at the praise from her daddy. Dr. Jung holds up a small box and says, "Now you need to pick a bandage for Minseo."

She selects one with Piglet from Winnie the Pooh. Dr. Jung gently applies the bandage to her arm and rolls down her sweater sleeve.

"There we go. You should start feeling better soon, Minseo. You'll have to eat lots of yogurt and soft foods today. Do you think you can do that?"

She nods very solemnly.

"Good." Dr. Jung helps her off the examination table.

"Um," Minseo says hesitantly.

"Yes?" Dr. Jung asks, looking down.

"Will you take care of Miss Bunny while I'm gone?" she asks.

"Of course," Dr. Jung replies with a smile.

Changmin slides off the examination table as well. He gives Dr. Jung a bow and says, "Thank you, really."

"My pleasure," Dr. Jung replies. "Now you two get home safe, alright? She'll be contagious for the next 24 hours, so no school. Soft foods are probably best. And maybe," he says with a grin to Minseo, "some ice cream."

"Ice cream?" Minseo exclaims.

"After breakfast, a nap, and some lunch," Changmin replies.

Minseo is okay with that. She takes Changmin's hand and says, "Daddy, let's go home."

Dr. Jung and Changmin both laugh. "Okay, sweetheart. Let's go home. What do you say to Dr. Jung?"

"Thank you, Dr. Jung," Minseo says.

"You're very welcome," he says.

Minseo falls asleep on the way home, thankfully. Changmin lifts her out of the car and carries her back inside. He gently tucks her into his bed before changing back into his pajamas and crawling in next to her.

What a day, and it hasn't even started yet.


End file.
